Slugs & fruiting bodies

[altenate]

I have a few logs growing with different edibles (reishi, shiitake, oyster)

The oysters are starting to fruit, the others not far off, they have onleybeen doweled for a couple of months....

& also a couple of patches of woodchips starting to run (with edibles of course)

but am currently having a problem with native slugs (the ones with triangles) & those other shite fat speckled slugs. I hate slugs!!

They got into a couple of blocks of oyster & just destroy them, besides being slimey blahs.

Does any one know about the NASAA organic approved snail repellant stuff that you can get fro Bunnings if it would be detrimental to my outcomes??

The multiguard contains 60g/kg iron EDTA complex which is safe for my kids, dogs possums etc, but not sure what this is entirely

but what would it do to my mushrooms??

It seems to break down pretty quick but ends up with some type of fungal growth that I cant identify.

So whats the best way besides growing in a controlled environment (ie indoors)??

[gecko]

I'd imagine that mushrooms would laugh while they consumed it

...with the dead slugs and all

.

Edited March 20, 2012 by gecko

[shifabrains]

rock salt they will avoid it like the plague ( if they knew what the plague was)

[Alice]

EDTA is a multidentate ligand that forms a co-ordination complex with the iron, helping it to stay soluble (and therefore available) to plants as otherwise the Fe might precipitate to form the metal oxides/hydroxides. You can think of it as just a source of Fe fertiliser, which also happens to repel slugs and snails. I consider it to be quite safe (and use it over other choices), but of course you will find studies that contradict this. It can and is used medically in reasonably high doses e.g. to treat lead poisoning. It's probably the safest chemical repellant that actually works.

Don't know what it will do to your shrooms sorry. I expect not much, as Fe is abundant anyway.

Copper tape is good but I don't know how you would go about taping off the area.... it's best for defined vege boxes, raised gardens etc.

[RyanVolle]

can you wire fence your shrooms? that might helm

or maybe surround your shrooms with copper wire and see what happens :D

surround it with sharp sand or sharp gravel

or maybe you can fence your shrooms and copper wire <multitasking FTW

and clean the place off slugs and snails before you fence them

[Trayto]

ive had the same problem except in my veggie patch....the mushies are inside. What has seemed to work pretty damn well is beer. I dig a little hole in the soil and place some sort of container into the hole so there is a bit of a drop. Then I just fill the container with beer; the snails and slugs seem to like the beer waaaaaaaay more and just fall in and drown. Its worked for me and is pretty damn safe.

[Trayto]

i also just read in the green gardener by josh byrne that coffe works well. "dilute one part strong espresso coffe to ten parts water and spray liberally over foliage of plants that are being eaten (spose it should work for fruiting bodies too) and on the soil and base. When the pest travel across the coffee mixture they absorb it and quickly die."

[Tallman]

Sorry this is a bit off topic:

Do you reckon the coffee spray thing might also work for small soft caterpillars? The little buggers are decimating my pak choy. Grrr

[Psylo]

Although I haven't tried it, my partner tells me that finely broken eggshells on the soil surface act as a deterrent to snails. The theory being that the sharpness will damage their soft bodies if they proceed. Anyone tried this?

[RyanVolle]

Although I haven't tried it, my partner tells me that finely broken eggshells on the soil surface act as a deterrent to snails. The theory being that the sharpness will damage their soft bodies if they proceed. Anyone tried this?

 

havent tried that but seen a video of it, just an explanation though, sharp sand could also work

[El Presidente Hillbillios]

what about diatomacous earth?